Emily Mounce, Neal Moriconi, Akash Jain, Eric Clark and Robyn Abernathy of Richmond and Melissa Limbaugh of Glen Allen have gained membership to the Marching Virginians of Virginia Tech. To qualify for the marching band students must audition one week before the beginning of classes each fall.

Commonly known as The Spirit of Tech, Virginia Tech’s marching band is in its 37th year. Founded in 1974, The Marching Virginians have performed for hundreds of nationally televised football games and parades.

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Michael C. Leopold, associate professor of chemistry at the University of Richmond, recently received a Henry Dreyfus Teacher Scholar-Award for 2010. The award provides Leopold with $60,000 to spend over five years in support of his research assisted by Richmond undergraduates. Fewer than 10 of the awards are made annually by the Camille & Henry Dreyfus Foundation Inc.

Leopold studies nanomaterials in the environment, work that is at the junction of materials science and bioanalytical chemistry. He is particularly interested in the interactions between synthetic nanomaterials and biomolecules.

New board members for the Home Building Association of Richmond are Kirk Aikey of Aikey Construction; Jeremy Harring of Harring Construction; Doug Jones, CPA of B2B CFO and Dave Smith of Thalhimer.

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Virginia's Division of Capitol Police promoted four police officers, including two Henrico residents, at a ceremony earlier this week. Thomas Hickey was promoted to the position of lieutenant, special operations and Jesse Gilliam was promoted to the position of shift sergeant, daily shift.

Hickey has more than 29 years of law enforcement experience with DCP. His new duties consist of managing the day-to-day operations of Investigations, administrative oversight and coordination of the Critical Incident Team and the Crowd Response Teams, development of the Division’s operations plans for special events and intelligence.

Gilliam has more than 15 years of law enforcement experience. His new duties involve supervising patrolmen assigned and daily operations of the day shift. He retired from the U.S. Navy as a helicopter aircrewman and undersea acoustic analyst.

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Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell recently appointed Shelly Shuman-Johnson of Chesterfield to the State Council for Interstate Adult Offender Supervision. Shuman-Johnson is the director of the Henrico County Victim/Witness Assistance Program.

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The 10th Annual Filipino Festival will be held Aug. 7-8 at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, 8200 Woodman Rd., beginning with opening ceremonies at 5 p.m. Friday and continuing with live entertainment, food and exhibits until 10 p.m. On Saturday the festival will take place from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. with a full schedule of performances featuring traditional Filipino dance, music and song.

Filipino cuisine, including BBQ, pansit, lumpia, adobo, halo-halo, lechon, empanada and leche flan, will be available for purchase. The festival will also feature a children's area, church tours, exhibits, and health screenings. > Read more.

The Children’s Museum of Richmond last week opened its new Short Pump location at Short Pump Town Center, to the delight of children who attended a sneak preview of the location July 10. The new facility, located under the forthcoming LL Bean store (formerly the food court) is 8,500 square feet in size – much larger than CMoR’s former Short Pump location at West Broad Village, which opened in 2010. The new space includes The CarMax Foundation Service Station, the Silver Diner, a grocery store, a performance stage and an art studio, as well as a giant Light Bright Wall. > Read more.

The Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Henrico Police are both presenting community events tomorrow, Aug. 1. The Feria Community Resource Fair at Richmond International Raceway brings together community service providers, embassies/consulates from Latin American countries, government agencies, nonprofit organizations and corporations that impact the Latino community. The Division of Police’s Community Day will feature demonstrations and displays from police, fire, animal protection and sheriff’s office, as well as family activities, food, entertainment and more. Other events this weekend include wine, chess and theatre! For all our top picks this weekend, click here! > Read more.